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The Philadelphia Phillies have been doing something that hasn't really made much sense: they've kept three catchers on the active roster. J.T. Realmuto, Rafael Marchan, and Garrett Stubbs have all been on the roster for the Phillies.
But that's all changing in the middle of the Phillies' series against the Los Angeles Dodgers. After a win on Monday, the Phillies have made a roster move with Stubbs and an .806 OPS outfielder.
Todd Zolecki of MLB.com reports that the Phillies have placed Stubbs on the injured list with a wrist injury and have called up Bryan De La Cruz, the former Miami Marlins and Atlanta Braves outfielder, to take his place on the 26-man roster.
Phillies call up Bryan De La Cruz, place Garrett Stubbs on injured list
"Official: Bryan De La Cruz was recalled from Triple-A," Zolecki reports. "The Phillies placed Garrett Stubbs on the 10-day IL with left wrist inflammation to make room for him on the 26-man roster."
While this Stubbs injury wasn't known about at the time of this roster move, his playing time was few and far between, so his roster spot was already in jeopardy.
He's had just 28 at-bats this season, hitting .179 with a .429 OPS in 20 games played. It just didn't make sense to keep him on the roster. Instead of designating him for assignment, the Phillies have placed him on the IL, where he could stay for a while.
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Taking his spot on the MLB roster is De La Cruz, the 29-year-old right-handed hitting outfielder who has spent time with the Marlins and Braves in his MLB career, along with a very brief stint with the Pittsburgh Pirates in 2024.
He has a .251 batting average in the Majors with a .697 OPS, but his .453 OPS in 47 at-bats for the Braves in 2025 has kept him out of the Major Leagues since.
But now, he's getting another shot in the Majors, this time with the Phillies. It's his third team in the NL East he's been a part of, and hopefully, it goes better than his Braves' stint.
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In the minor leagues at Triple-A for the Phillies this year, De La Cruz has been fairly impressive. He has an .806 OPS with a .269 average, 12 home runs, 56 RBIs, 44 walks, 19 doubles, 83 hits, and 45 runs scored in 308 at-bats across 84 games.
This June, De La Cruz posted a .333 batting average with a .980 OPS, while in July he had a .394 average with a 1.035 OPS. After a torrid summer in Triple-A, he's earned a promotion to the Majors for another chance in the big leagues.
De La Cruz will be a depth outfielder for the Phillies, likely earning his playing time against left-handed pitching. He's not in Tuesday's lineup, but he should see playing time in the next week or so as the Phillies try to see if he has anything in him still.
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